Bay Area BART workers to return to work while negotiations continue

Commuter rail service will resume after a San Francisco transit agency suspended talks with its two largest unions.

A statement released late Thursday by Bay Area Rapid Transit said trains will begin running by 3 p.m. Friday. The labor agreement between the agency and its unions will be extended for 30 days.

BART is the nation's fifth-largest rail system and serves more than 400,000 commuters each weekday. BART carries passengers from the farthest reaches of San Francisco's densely populated eastern suburbs to San Francisco International Airport across the bay.

The strike began early Monday after negotiations broke off. Talks resumed Tuesday as political pressure and public pleas mounted to reach a settlement.